Liverpool vs Everton: The last Merseyside derby at Goodison Park

This was an emotional moment for Everton fans. It was the last time they faced their biggest rivals, Liverpool, at Goodison Park. The dramatic match ended in a thrilling 2-2 draw, filled with red cards, yellow cards, and numerous reckless challenges. The game was packed with electrifying moments. In the final minutes, Tarkowski scored, sparking celebrations among Everton fans as if they had just won the league. Liverpool vs Everton always posses drama.

The two teams’ situations in the tables are not the same. Liverpool is the league leader with 57 points, a 7-point lead over second-place Arsenal, whereas Everton is in 15th place with 27 points. Last match, Liverpool’s horrible loss to Plymouth Argyle, a bottom championship team in the FA CUP,

After Sean Dyche, David Moyes became Everton’s manager. One thing has changed since Moyes: Everton has started to press hard when opponents are in the build-up. In this match, Liverpool failed in the build-up before 79 minutes, when Trent Alexander-Arnold came in for Conor Bradley and gave the build-up dynamism.

Liver pool build-up vs  Everton high press 

The basic principle of defence is to remain compact, but when you press high in the man-to-man, it’s hard to remain compact. David Moyes’s press principle is to show them outside or force them outside whatever is in the high press or low block. Liverpool’s build-up was predicted, but the player movements did not create a new passing lane or find a free man.

                                         Everton pressing vs Liverpool build-up. Force them to play wide.

Beto cut the passing lane with his curving run on the side where Van Dijk was the centre-back. I believe Van Dijk is a better ball-playing centre-back than Konaté. Everton blocked Liverpool’s progression on the right-hand side and regained possession. When Gravenberch tried to escape Doucouré’s shadow cover and find a passing lane, Gueye immediately pressed him, cutting off his options. Liverpool attempted an alternative build-up approach by playing directly towards Salah, but Mykolenko marked him tightly, leaving no opportunity for him to lay the ball off to others.

                                           How Liverpool broke the Everton high press with interchanging

After 79 minutes, Liverpool finally broke through Everton’s press when Alexander-Arnold and Salah interchanged, creating space. Arnold then delivered one of his trademark cross-field passes. Initially, Arnold took up an inverted position alongside Everton’s wide forward Jack Harrison, allowing centre-back Konaté to play a direct pass to Salah. Salah then executed a clever heel pass, dragging Mykolenko out of position and creating space on the left.

Liverpool  in the middle third 

Most of the battle happened in the midfield Liverpool was unable to progress the ball in that area. David Moyes has known his out-of-possession tactics. Everton used a compact, narrow 4-4-2 block and their wide midfielders, Jack Harrison and Lindstrøm, were excellent. Repeatedly checking their head in the back. Gravenberch was unable to find any space to receive the ball. Liverpool build up with 4+1 in the back. Liverpool used Diaz as false number 9, who dropped in the wide area to progress the ball, which increased the support option, but it created a lack of penetration. Szoboszlai and Mac Allister tried to find space behind the wide players and created a 2vs 1 situation when Bradley or Robertson received the ball. But Jack Harrison and Lindstrøm stayed their position and scanned before pressing their fullbacks. They

Diaz shifted from striker position to wide area to overload, waiting for the wide player to press Robertson,

aware of the vertical distance between them and full back. Because if they press and catch, fullbacks can find passing lane Gravenberch for ball progression. Everton’s centre-backs stayed 

Everton’s adjustment  to Diaz’s position 

Everton’s defensive shape was well-structured, shifting efficiently based on ball position. James Garner and Idrissa Gueye were particularly effective in tracking Dominik Szoboszlai and Alexis Mac Allister when they moved into the channels or when Liverpool’s full-backs received the ball. Arne Slot kept Liverpool’s defensive line narrow, ensuring compact rest defence and minimising the time available to switch play across the pitch. However, Liverpool’s back three remained too flat, which became a key issue. Their horizontal passing failed to break Everton’s first line of pressure, and as the ball rarely progressed vertically beyond the front two attackers, Liverpool’s centre-backs could not use the numerical advantages.

        How Everton shuffled according  to ball position and wide forward (Lindstrøm )happy to mark Diaz

In the Liverpool vs Everton match,  Sometimes, Van Dijk was able to use his trade mark long ball towards Channel space(The gap between fullbacks and centrebacks)due to the low pressure from the last line of Everton’s defence, but Everton’s fullbacks marked well both Gakpo and Salah.

 

Everton’s build-up against Liverpool’s high press

In the Liverpool vs Everton match, Moyes prefers a more direct, long-ball approach, aiming to exploit the channel space between the centre-back and fullback for penetration, unbalancing the opponent’s defence. There are two key reasons behind this strategy:

1. Attacking behind the opposition’s defence with minimal passes.
2. If unsuccessful, winning the second ball collectively between the lines.
                                             Everton’s build-up strategy against Liverpool high-press
   Liverpool’s high press often left space in midfield, and Everton capitalised on this by gaining a numerical advantage for second-ball recoveries. In their build-up, right centre-back Tarkowski positioned himself high and wide, pushing his fullback higher up the pitch, where he was marked by Gakpo. This forced Díaz to press from a wider position, creating space for Gueye to drop deeper and absorb the high press when needed.In the final third, Beto and Doucouré moved into the channel space, attempting to win the first ball and pin the opposition’s defence. This prevented the centre-backs from stepping forward while the wide wingers remained free to compete for second balls.
3. The set piece of the game The most fascinating aspect of the Premier League is the variety of strategies used for set pieces. Everton scored a brilliant goal through Beto, showcasing a well-executed double movement. He initially positioned himself behind the defensive line before moving inside just as Branthwaite took the free kick, ensuring he remained onside. Then, with perfect timing, he made a second run behind the defence and finished with brilliance.Konate’s body orientation was  not good here .

                      Beto scored from the indirect freekick with his double movement avoiding the offside trap.